


The Mysterious Locket of 12 Grimmauld Place

by Trex_patronus



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Angst and Feels, Cleaning, Closure, Gen, Horcruxes, House Elves, No beta we die like regulus, Not Canon Compliant - Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Number Twelve Grimmauld Place, Salazar Slytherin's Locket
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-29
Updated: 2021-02-16
Packaged: 2021-03-15 01:21:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 2,662
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29055825
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Trex_patronus/pseuds/Trex_patronus
Summary: “Ginny?  Something wrong?” Fred asked.Ginny slowly turned the locket over in her hands.  “It feels...familiar.  It reminds me of...” she swallowed nervously.  “...the diary.  From first year.”
Relationships: Fred Weasley & George Weasley & Ginny Weasley, Hermione Granger & Harry Potter & Ron Weasley, Regulus Black & Kreacher, Regulus Black & Sirius Black, Sirius Black & Harry Potter, Sirius Black & Kreacher
Comments: 43
Kudos: 143





	1. In Which Ginny Recognizes Something

**Author's Note:**

> I own nothing, the world and characters belong to JKR. I'm just a fan writing for my own (and hopefully your) enjoyment!

It was just an ordinary day of cleaning in Grimmauld place. Sirius, Harry, Hermione, and the Weasleys had been through shelves upon shelves of supposed "heirlooms" and all they had to show for it was a bulging trash bag.

“Well, this is gaudy,” George announced to the room, picking up a large, golden locket.

Sirius didn’t look up from the books he was sorting through, but replied, “Mhm. It’s all hideous, subtly wasn’t my family's specialty. You can chuck it.”

“That’s odd,” George noted. Out of mere curiosity--which, in such a house as this was perhaps ill-advised--he had attempted to prise open the locket. “It won’t budge. Reckon it’s enchanted?”

“I reckon you're a weakling,” Fred retorted, snatching the locket from his twin’s hands. He too, attempted to open the clasp, but was not rewarded.

Harry, Ron, and Ginny were paying them moderate attention now. Hermione simply tsked at them as she picked up another book. “I expect it’s just another joke. Sirius, do you want to keep ‘A History of House-Elves’?”

“No, I don’t,” Sirius answered, before adding: “and neither do you. It’s not what you’re thinking.” Hermione wrinkled her nose, and placed the book disdainfully in the--significantly larger--stack of books to be tossed.

“And we’re not joking, Hermione,” Fred put in.

“Yeah, it really won’t budge,” George insisted.

“Let me try,” Ginny offered, standing up and walking towards her brothers.

Fred laughed. “Gin, if _we_ can’t get it open, how do _you_ expect to?”

“Yeah, Gin, you can’t Bat Bogey hex a locket,” George teased.

Ginny rolled her eyes, and grabbed the locket from Fred’s hands. She paused for a moment, her eyebrows knitting together.

“Ginny? Something wrong?” Fred asked.

Ginny slowly turned the locket over in her hands. “It feels...familiar. It reminds me of...” she swallowed nervously. “...the diary. From first year.”

Fred wrapped an arm around her shoulders. “Oh, Gin, I’m sorry. I bet it’s all the dark magic in this house.”

Ginny shook her head emphatically. “No! No, it feels _exactly_ like it,” she insisted. She looked around the room, and her eyes landed on Harry. “Harry! You feel it too, don’t you? C’mere,” she waved him over.

Harry took the locket from her. There definitely was something off about it. It did feel a bit like the diary, but it also felt like when he’d encountered Voldemort in the graveyard last year. And there was a gentle tick, like a distorted heartbeat. “I...I definitely feel _something_ ,” Harry agreed.

“Woah, woah!” Sirius exclaimed, standing up and walking over to the children. “Let’s not jump to any conclusions, kiddo. This house is full of dark objects, just...stay away from it, until we know what exactly-”

Sirius was interrupted by a loud crash from the doorway. There stood Kreacher, and a shattered tea tray he’d been carrying, probably a cover to sneak more heirlooms away. “Master Regulus’ locket…” the elf murmured.

Next to Harry, Sirius went still. It was as if he’d frozen. “It’s _whose_ locket?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah, I know it's short, and I left you on a cliffie there. This is just gonna be four chapters, as it will focus more on Sirius figuring out what went down in '79 than what this would've meant for the war as a whole. (I'm sentimental for the Black Brothers, sue me)


	2. In Which Kreacher Has A Tantrum

Kreacher frantically shook his head as Sirius approached him. "Kreacher is not to tell the family. Master Regulus was saying Kreacher is not to tell the family," he was repeating.

"Kreacher, tell me about the locket!" Sirius commanded.

"Kreacher won't, Kreacher won't!" The elf was shrieking now, and Hermione seemed upset.

"Sirius, stop it!" she pleaded, before turning to Kreacher, who was still shrieking. "Kreacher, we're not family. Can you tell us?"

Kreacher stopped screaming and looked over Hermione for a second, before speaking, "the mudblood brat wants Kreacher to-"

"That's enough of that, Kreacher!" Sirius interrupted, harshly. "What have I said about calling people that word?"

"It's fine, Sirius, he's not...he's clearly upset, he's not in his right mind…" Hermione excused.

"Don't make excuses for him, Hermione," Sirius said, before turning back to Kreacher. "Kreacher, I order you to tell me about that locket."

Kreacher shook his head. "Kreacher cannot, Master Regulus said he is not to tell the family…"

"Regulus is dead!" Sirius shouted. This, of course, only led Kreacher to dissolve into tears.

Thankfully, at that moment, Remus Lupin entered the room. "What's all this noise? Sirius is everything okay?" he asked.

"Just brilliant," Sirius muttered. "Except Kreacher knows something about Reg, and he's not budging."

Remus looked from Sirius, to where the elf was sobbing on the floor. "What does he know?" Remus asked.

"Something about this locket," Sirius said, holding it up for Remus' examination. "He let it slip by accident, and now he's having a conniption over it."

"And it has something to do with Voldemort," Harry pitched in. "It feels like him." Ginny nodded in agreement.

Remus sighed. "Okay, Harry. One thing at a time, though. Let's figure out what Kreacher knows. Kreacher?" The elf looked up. "What can you tell us about this locket?"

"Kreacher cannot! Master Regulus is saying do not tell the family!"

"You see what I mean?" Sirius asked. "He shouldn't have to follow orders from Regulus anymore, he's dead." Kreacher continued sobbing.

"Well, I doubt they’re magically binding," Remus agreed, "but from a psychological standpoint, I'd say he's very attached to the orders."

Sirius sighed. "Figures," he murmured. "The one time the little idiot actually considers me family, and it's just to keep me in the dark."

Remus gave him an awkward half-smile. "We'll tell you everything, I promise."

"Yeah, you sodding better, Moons," Sirius grumbled, “...sorry,” he added. “Kreacher, I order you to tell Remus everything.” The house-elf grumbled, and nodded. This must have satisfied Sirius because he left.

If Remus had thought about it, or if he’d had any idea what was coming, he’d have asked the kids to leave as well.


	3. In Which Sirius Has Questions, And Remus Has Answers

_Do Not Enter  
Without the express Permission of:  
Regulus Arcturus Black_

Sirius had, for the entirety of his childhood, disregarded the sign completely. Yet now, he couldn’t bring himself to cross the threshold into his younger brother’s room.

Regulus had just...disappeared. He’d been reported missing, but none of the family had bothered to tell Sirius. Sirius only found out from the Ministry, after his brother had been declared legally dead. It was the first time he’d actually cried since joining the Order. 

No one seemed to have any idea what happened to Regulus. Until one day there was a rumour that he’d tried to leave, and been killed for his disloyalty. Sirius had believed it, because, after all, how could Regulus--with his slight build, his nose constantly in a book, and an insistence to defend house-elves--possibly have lasted long as a Death Eater?

It was only today that he’d thought there could be more to the story.

After a moment, Sirius steeled himself, and stepped closer to the door. (He had an odd, fleeting thought that he should knock.) He turned the doorknob to no avail. It was locked. _Little squirt,_ Sirius thought, much to his own surprise. But before he could dwell on that, he took out his wand and haphazardly flicked it at the knob. The door slowly opened, revealing a room that was all at once familiar and alien.

It was dusty, surprisingly enough. Perhaps Kreacher hadn’t been able to bring himself to enter, either. The family crest was painted above his bed. The absurdity of it might’ve been funny if Sirius hadn’t grown to disgust the image. Another wall was a collage of newspapers. As Sirius walked towards it, he felt a knot in his stomach, as if he already knew what the papers were about.

Despite his desperate hope that he would be proved wrong, the wall was plastered with articles about Voldemort, and his rise to power. Sirius desperately wanted to tear them from the wall, and yet he wanted the room to stay as Regulus had left it.

“Why’d you do it, Regs?” he asked the wall, as if he expected some sort of answer. “Why’d you join them? You...you got yourself killed, and for what? Blood purity? What’s that ever gotten us, anyways?” Sirius sighed, and turned away from the wall. He felt tears welling up in his eyes. _Sodding Regs…_

“You’re pretty stupid, you know. You could’ve come to me. You knew I’d have helped you, right? You probably didn’t. I don’t think I ever told you. I’m so sorry, Regs. For everything. If I’d just stayed, if I’d just made you come with me…” Sirius felt the tears rolling down his face at this point. “I’m so sorry. I shouldn’t have said a lot of the things I said.” Sirius looked around the room again, and whispered, “I’m sorry, Regs.”

There was a light knock on the half-open door. Sirius swiped at his eyes to remove the tears, vaguely aware his eyes would be red, still. He walked over to find Remus lingering in the doorway.

“Well? Did you get it out of him?” Sirius asked, the slightest bit impatient.

Remus nodded. “I...it’s rather big. And...Harry was right. It’s definitely about Voldemort.” Sirius felt an odd chill at the idea. Had Regulus been more involved than he’d thought? For all his impatience, and for how desperately he wanted to know, Sirius was suddenly incredibly anxious to learn the truth. Remus frowned. “Maybe you should sit down?” he suggested. Sirius nodded, and sat down gently on Regulus’ bed, again trying not to disturb how the room had been left, as Remus began to recount what he’d learned from Kreacher.


	4. In Which Sirius Prunes the Family Tree

Finding out the truth hurt so much. It was like losing his little brother all over again. Only worse, because he had thought that it had been simple. If anything had been simple then. But painless, at least. And maybe that was a horrible thing to dwell on, but the thought of his little brother being ripped apart and drowned by inferi...after downing Merlin-knows-what potion...

“Are you okay?” Remus asked.

“Yeah, yeah, I’m fine,” Sirius muttered, detached. He was staring straight ahead of him at the wall of newspaper clippings. “Just fine,” he repeated, as his eyes roamed over photographs of the Dark Mark against the sky and headlines of muggle families being killed. It didn’t make sense. It didn’t seem like something Regulus would do. Or did it?

It wasn’t something that the boy who painted “Toujours Pur” across his wall would do. It wasn’t something that the boy who collected newspaper clippings would do. It wasn’t something that the coward who had chickened out of the Death Eaters would do. But of course, he now knew Regulus had never _been_ that coward. And maybe...maybe it was something that the boy who cared for his house-elf would do. Maybe Regulus wasn’t exactly like Sirius had thought. Maybe his little brother had been a blood-traitor too. He gave a weak smile at the thought.

And as much as it hurt to feel like he had lost Regulus again, Sirius also felt like he had just gotten his brother back. They had been so close as little boys, and it had hurt Sirius so much when they grew up, and stopped getting along. He had always thought Regulus had changed, and begun to just go along with whatever their mother and father asked of him. And here he had tangible proof that Regulus had still had some… _Regulus_ left in him. He wasn’t just the pureblood puppet Sirius had thought. And of course, Sirius felt terrible for thinking that, especially now that it hadn’t been true. But he was delighted at having been proved wrong.

Sirius wished he’d seen it sooner, though. Seen his little brother was still there, and done something to help. And Regulus could’ve made it out of the war alive.

“Would you like to be alone?” Remus asked. Sirius realized he was still there.

“Oh, um, yes. Actually, are the kids still in the tapestry room?” he asked.

Remus shook his head. “No, I think they all went down to the kitchen. Dumbledore will be by later tonight to have a look at that locket.”

Sirius nodded. “Yeah, brilliant, I’m just gonna,” he gestured at the doorway, and awkwardly left, but not before taking a last look around Regulus’ room.

He was lost in thought, wondering what the locket could be, and what Dumbledore would decide to do with it. He only realized when he reached the door that he had arrived at the tapestry room. He walked in, and stared at the family tree that stretched across the wall.

The small burn marks were what drew his eyes. The names weren’t readable, but Sirius didn’t need that. Uncle Alphard would tell him the stories behind them if he asked, and never minded repeating himself. _A shame he never had kids,_ Sirius thought, _he would have been the only decent parent of the lot._

His eyes roamed over the stains, remembering those stories. Isla, she’d married a muggle. Phineas, from what Sirius had heard, he’d just been a decent person. Marius, he’d been a squib. And then of course, there was himself, Uncle Alphard, and Andromeda.

 _The blood traitors_ , Sirius thought, feeling a grin creep onto his face. He looked down at the wand he’d been using. It was a spare one that Mad-Eye had lent to him, and it worked well enough for him (Mad-Eye did have a _lot_ of spare wands to choose from).

He looked at Regulus’ name. The birth date. The death date. It was odd to see the death date there, now that he knew what had occurred.

He raised the wand, and leveled it with his brother’s name. He could cast it wordlessly, but where was the fun in that? He was a Black, dramatics was in his blood. “Incendio!” he shouted. He watched the small burst of flame engulf the fabric, before disappearing, and leaving a burn mark identical to the one next to it.

“Welcome to the blood traitors, Regs,” he whispered conspiratorially to the tapestry, reveling in the calm before the storm.

“BLOOD TRAITORS! FILTH!” And there was the storm. “DEFILING THE NOBLE HOUSE OF MY FATHER’S!!”

"Sirius, can you help me with the curtains?" Remus called from the hallway, over the sound of screaming. Sirius walked out to where Remus was trying to shut up his mother. “Why were you casting incendio?” Remus asked, struggling with the curtains. Sirius simply nodded towards the tapestry room, as he took the curtains from his friend. Remus sighed. “Sirius, you didn’t.”

“But I did,” Sirius said with a grin. “Can’t have any blood traitors on the family tree, can we Mother?”

The portrait stopped her shrill screaming, and blinked at Sirius, who dropped the curtains in anticipation of a verbal spar. “How dare you speak to me of blood traitors?” she cried, when she recovered from the shock. “What have you done to my tapestry?”

“Nothing you wouldn’t have. Would you believe me if I told you your son betrayed Voldemort?”

“You are no son of mine,” she scoffed.

Sirius laughed. _Likewise_ , he thought. “Well, I suppose it’s a good thing I wasn’t referring to myself, then. Could you _imagine_ the embarrassment if I was?” he mocked.

“No. No, surely not. Not Regulus…” she trailed off, before insisting “You’re lying to me, boy!”

Sirius rocked back and forth on his heels. “‘Fraid not, Mummy dearest.”

His mother chose to ignore the title, although she winced ever-so-slightly. “My son would never-” Sirius cut her off.

“Well, _my brother_ did!” he told her, pride in his voice. “How does it feel, Mother? You’re two for two on family disappointments. Y’know, I feel rather sorry for you. Perhaps I’ll take pity, and refrain from mentioning that your great-niece fancies a-”

“Sirius!” Remus interrupted. Sirius noted with pride that he was blushing a fierce shade of red.

Sirius laughed. “Alright, alright. Let’s just shut the hag up, then.” They pulled the curtains closed together, and headed into the kitchen to await the arrival of Dumbledore.

_The End_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let me know your thoughts! I had so much fun writing this fic!


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